Packing Only a Carry-On

Now, I will start off admitting that I have a problem with packing. It is supremely harder and harder every time I try to whittle down what it is I want to bring with me.
I challenged myself with my 10 day trip to Europe to only pack a carry-on bag (+ a backpack) with stuff I would need and it really was that, a challenge.

Packing what you want and what you need are both very different things.
Starting off, I threw everything I wanted to bring with me onto my bed... and yes, it was a mess.
Rolling up and squishing everything in my packing cubes was done, but it seemed like too much to me and a bit too heavy for a carry-on, so I thought and drew out things I figured I didn't actually need.

Here's a rough guess at what my packing list consisted of:

3-4 pairs of shorts
2 skirts (one of which was a maxi)
1 pair of jeans (which I will wear on the plane)
1 pair of casual cotton pants
2 dresses
2 rompers
6-8 shirts (tank tops and t-shirts)
4 cami tops
2 bralettes and 1 bra
10 pairs of underwear
1 cardigan
2 jackets (one my regular jacket and a windbreaker)
1 Bikini
4 pairs of socks

1 pair of athletic shoes (will wear on plane)
1 pair of comfy flats (Toms)
A pair of sandals

Toiletries (small shampoo, conditioner, makeup, cleansing wipes, sunscreen, hand sanitizer, lotion, etc)
Camera + extra batteries and charger/adapter + extra SDHC cards
Phone + charger
Passport and other important items (debit card, ID, money)
Purse
Snacks
Disposable water bottle
Gum

This of course will be edited and redone multiple times after this, but this is the roughest thought of what I wanted to pack.

I can't begin to say how difficult it truly is when you have a tough time like I do to not pack a lot, but in the end, it's totally worth it. You can always buy things you need when you get to your destination and it's always a lot nicer to not have to lug so much stuff around.

The bag I'm using is a Samsonite Savor Wheeled Tote bag that you can find here.
My pack is a High Sierra 14L Hydration pack (that I took the water pack out of) that you can get here.
My packing cubes are from Ebags and they work awesome! You can get them on amazon in different sizes (here), I just got the medium ones.

I leave on Saturday and thought I would post this early. I'll try to post pictures on my Twitter account (here) while I'm gone!
Or my instagram: suz1177

Cheers and safe travels!

My Favorite Place

Cinque Terre is one of those places that you go to and never want to leave. The five small towns that dot the coastline of the Liguria region of Italy are probably one of the most hidden, but favorited places to travel to.
If you've been looking for a place with swimming, not many or no tourists, and a relaxing lifestyle in a quaint town, you've found it.

When I traveled here, we stayed in the city of Riomaggiore. This town was exactly what we needed to relax and then to have more adventures.

Since this is one of 5 towns within this Cinque Terre area, it was on the end of it, which meant we could get from one to the other pretty easily.
We spent one day hiking from here to the other end (through all these cities) of Vernazza, where we ended with swimming and a quick train ride back.

The next day we hiked the opposite direction, away from Vernazza and the rest, our end spot was Porto Venere, where we caught a boat ride back to where we were staying.

Both hikes were very manageable and fairly easy to do, although I would say to keep a buddy with you, because hiking alone can be a bit confusing. I did get lost on a couple occasions because I'm a slow hiker and got left behind. All in all though, I got back and there was no harm done.

The sites through the hike are gorgeous and worth taking your time anyways! I mean, it's Italy!
Hiking through some precariously placed vineyards, rocky outcroppings, and tree covered paths, it was a great experience.

We also spent 4th of July here, which was fun in itself! In Riomaggiore, the central bar is actually run and owned by Americans (if I remember correctly) and they helped us to celebrate in style! Live music and lots of beer for the chaperones (no we were not allowed to drink on this trip, only sporadically in Belgium and France, with supervision).

I think the best thing about staying here was our rented apartment. It was amazingly airy and we left the windows open a lot. So much space and a kitchen to make food! And the view wasn't half bad either, although we were not right next to the water, it was still awesome.
Although the 114 stairs up to it (yes we counted each stair) was a pain when you're tired.

This is one of my favorite places I've ever been. Everything is just a little bit slower paced. It was relaxed and you got to go and do what you pleased.
The little market shop was perfect to buy food and then go home and cook it. You just can't really beat the small town feel when it has such a great atmosphere.

I would go back in a heartbeat.

Where is your favorite place that you have been?

Cheers and safe travels!

Siena, Italy Throwback - 2010

Tuscany! If you've ever been you know how beautiful it is and if you haven't you've heard of it. Sitting in a train going through the gorgeous country, wistfully daydreaming of wine and pleasantries with local Italians.

We had only been in Rome for about 8 hours before heading off to our set location of Siena, which we would be staying to see the Palio horse races for the duration of our stay. Our hostel was a little bit out of the city but the walk wasn't bad, despite the blisters I had on my feet (from the trip thus far) that would tell you differently.

Getting into the city was easy and we always had a way of going in through the same entrance, because the whole city center is walled off, we would go through the porcupine or Istrice gate.

There are 17 different contrades of Siena, which represent different sectors of the city, only 10 of which compete in the Palio (which is a 3 day event).
Everyone from our group chose which contrade they would root for. I chose the wave or Onda, although I bought scarves of a couple different ones as well.

The race was help in the center of the city, in Il Campo, which is an amazing city center where they block everyone in the middle and tie ropes and bring in dirt for the horses and their jockeys to run on.

The have parades and sing, wave flags and such before the race starts every day and then they're off! I think the winner while we were there for the whole race was the forest contrade or Selva.
It was more than a site to see and to witness this amazing event I had never even heard of until signing up for this trip.

We definitely also had our bundle of crazies within the crowd as well. We had some Canadians next to our group who had been drinking a lot (and don't get me wrong, I love Canadians!) but they don't let you out of the center once the race starts, because you'd have to go across the track and one of the girls really had to pee.
So in her state of mind, she just peed right then and there, in the center, near enough to get it on some of our groups backpacks... It was pretty gross. Thankfully not my backpack but hey, our leaders took care of it and almost got into a fist fight with the guys in their group.
Lots of yelling, it was hot, and we didn't like our stuff getting peed on. So I get it!

Anyways, even with that little set back, we had a great time. We got to see the Siena Cathedral, Duomo, which was beautiful. My friend and I had to wear little disposable skirts to cover our legs, but it was well worth it.

We also took a day trip to San Gimignano, which was awesome. Going up and getting a great view of their city from a tall lookout. Getting some of "The Worlds Greatest Gelato" which was pretty darn good (but I love gelato, so I'd like it anywhere).

I would definitely recommend a trip there if you've ever thought about it. There is a lot to see and do there, although be careful, it's easy to get turned around with all the twists and turns of the paths. There's also a lot of nice places to go in and use the restroom, without having to pay.
They also had great doner kebabs, which is one of my favorite easy fast food from Europe, so delicious!

On the way out of the city, we did make a quick stop in Pisa (which had my favorite doner kebabs of the trip!) and see the Leaning Tower. It was fun to sit and reflect and to see all the tourists "pushing" the tower in their pictures.

All in all, Italy has been one of my favorite places to travel to. The country is gorgeous, the people are mostly friendly and they have great food and places to see!

I will be writing about my favorite place in the world (so far) next week and hopefully making a post about how I pack my perfect carryon bag for my trip next week!

Cheers and safe travels!

The Beginning in Sarajevo - 2010

From as long as I can remember, Europe was always fascinating to me.
Somewhat in its history, from my ancestry, and the different legends/relics of time that were formed there. But really, for me, it was about the diverse cultures and the sheer weight of how different it was to the US.
So many countries within traveling distance of one another that I just couldn't wait to see.
Hence why I signed up for the Eurotour some teachers from my high school put on every 2 years. This trip was right after I graduated and it was the perfect timing.

At first, I was very nervous. My sister was going, which I had not wanted from the start, but thankfully I knew some other people going on the trip that I could group up with and try to keep up.

After the long flight, the stop in Frankfurt and the transfer to our night train (which was awesome because we had to stop in the middle of our trip due to lightning) it was a crazy busy start to our trek already.
We stopped in Croatia for a few hours and got to visit their amazingly beautiful Plitvice Lakes National Park. We rowed around in some cool boats for awhile and had a blast!

After this we had rented cars and drove on to our first destination of the trip, Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Initially, I didn't know much about this place, except for that it was in Europe (thankfully I knew that) but I definitely learned a lot more.
I didn't know that recently they had been in a war, until after we had gotten there. Our hostel that we stayed in had a cemetery on the way down into the city, which we walked by every day we were there.
                           

It was sad to see the ruins of the city and to know that it had happened so recently.

Our best time was just walking around the city, the views were amazing and we had a great guide. The food was amazing too! We had a traditional breakfast one morning of their well know Cevapi, which is a mince meat patty or sausage with bread.

We wandered around the marketplace a lot and would find things that we liked. We made a lot of side trips while we were here as well, like to see the Dervish house in Blagaj Tekke which was pretty awesome.

We also met up and traveled into Serbia to visit with a foreign exchange student who had been at our school. We had to be escorted by police officers and were brought to meet the mayor of the town of Priboj for a feast (which the showcased on their evening news and in their newspaper). After which we visited a monastery and a mosque and of course, watched some local basketball.
We also had the pleasure to visit Mostar, which is a really fascinating place, from the busy markets to the bridge people dive off of.

This was only the start to our month long journey. 3 days may not seem like a lot, but as you can see we made the most of our time. If you've ever thought about going, do it. While there are a lot of pickpockets in the city, most of the people are very nice and helpful.
Just be aware and wear your backpacks on the front of you, it's weird but it's not as easy for people to steal your things!

Cheers and safe travels! More to come...

Flashback to Switzerland

In 2010, I went on an amazing month long Eurotour after I graduated high school, with a bunch of other kids and some teachers from there.

One stop which was very memorable to me was our stop in Switzerland, Gimmelwald to be exact.
Taking the gondola up to Murren and trekking down to our mountain hostel, which is an awesome place in itself (here), we knew why we were staying here.

The mountain views, the crisp fresh air, the hundreds of cow bells clanking in the hills. It was wonderful.

But the ultimate reason was to really take a long, strenuous hike up to the top of one of the mountains, the Schilthorn, which you may have seen in a James Bond movie at some time.
This hike was grueling for me and made me very nervous. I'm not good at hiking and I didn't know if I would be stuck climbing by myself (because I'm slow) or be the last one up.

I stuck by one of my friends who seemed to have a tough time from the dinner we had eaten the night before.
Pause: He actually did have trouble from that and had to be taken to the hospital after the hike. He had a piece of food lodged in his throat which was making it hard for him to breathe and swallow. He was ok though!
We hiked together and stopped when either of us needed to, also taking pictures for each other a long the way.

Him with a Swiss cow.

Me at the mountain lake, somewhat near the top!

The tricky thing about hiking up here, is that there weren't any markers, just a slight path to follow that went away at certain point in the journey. Rocky outcroppings and a really sketchy narrow path (surrounded by a drop on both sides, this next picture doesn't do it justice) It was definitely an interesting hike.

While this was probably one of the hardest things I have done, it was altogether worth it.
I made it up to the top in about 4 and a half hours and I proudly say this is a great accomplishment of mine.
I didn't even know if I could make it all the way up, but I did it!

Definitely recommendation if you're ever in this area of the world. You might regret it while you're in the process of hiking up, but you won't regret it after.

More to come from this past trip and my upcoming one!

Safe travels!
















(This is Piz Gloria at the top, a revolving restaurant!)

The Perfect Carry-On

To start off, disclaimer: There is no perfect carry-on.

In a few weeks, I will whisk myself away on the vacation I've been waiting a year for. A 10 day trip over to Europe, to experience 4 amazing cities in 3 amazing countries.
What I hadn't thought about much, prior to my trip, was luggage.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a planner by nature and a researcher by choice, but I figured that it wouldn't be too difficult to find something that worked for me, within my price range, and that fit the overall criteria for airline restrictions.
Well, to my surprise, it was A LOT more difficult than it seemed.

To find something that met my specific requirements along with everything else was going to be a very hard decision.
The thing about going on an excursion, for me, is to make it as easy as possible. So step number one was to only stick to carry-on bags. Easy enough, I could find a decent carry-on, plus use a backpack filled with other necessities and be fine.
What I found out though, is that I'm paranoid about dimension restrictions. Most airlines will allow (at the very most) a 22x14x9  and 45 linear inch carry-on limit. That shouldn't seem hard... when I first started looking up luggage for this purpose, a lot popped up with those exact dimensions... but hold on.
A lot of them also go under the false pretense of "expandable" luggage, which means if you pack it just a little too full, move it out a little too much, and the airline decides they want to try your luggage out in the check box and it doesn't fit... You're screwed!

So here I am, looking for a bag, preferably of the 20 inch size, or even less if I could handle it and to my dismay, nothing seemed to come up from that search.
Either one side would be too long, or too wide and throw the dimensions all off or it was WAY out of my price range (why is smaller luggage more expensive sometimes?).

So I trekked on with my search. SwissGear caught my eye for a lot of my luggage needs and the prices were fine but come to find out that their dimensions that they stated did not include the wheels of the bag... which could ultimately be your downfall, if again you got chosen to test your bags out.
Paranoia set in once again and I kept searching.

Well, maybe I don't want a rolling bag at all! So duffel bags came to mind. If only they had rolling duffel bags, right? BAM.
Thankfully, I did happen upon some rolling duffel bags that suited my needs.
The first was this from London Fog
London Fog Chatham 19 inch Club Bag

I loved the look of this bag and it seemed like it would be a great contender. This was not the one I picked though, as the 10 inch side was not quite working for me.

I set my sights on this one and ultimately bought this from Samsonite (which also has other great bags, but a little pricey)
Samsonite Savor Wheeled Tote Bag

The dimensions worked for me, the size worked great for the packing cubes I ordered (these ones) and I think I could deal with the bag check, even if it was a little off.
This is what I wanted and for the price, it was pretty good. If I end up not liking it when I get it, I will update this with other ones I find.

Now, if price had truly been no problem, I would have gone with this from Tom Bihn
Aeronaut 30 Bag (or the 45)

In the coming weeks I will be posting about how I'm going to pack and fit everything I need for a 10 day trip to Europe in just carry-ons.

Cheers!

Taco Truck Challenge 2015

Hosted by 107.7 The End (Seattle, WA)
At Volunteer Park 5/2

What a great way to spend a lovely sunny day in the Pacific Northwest. Out and about in a beautiful park in Seattle. Tacos, beer, music and sun. Nope, I don't it could have gotten much better, unless the lines for the trucks had been shorter and I had gotten to try all the tacos. Then yes, that could have been better, but I'm not complaining.

The Taco Truck Challenge was a fun time, filled with over 20 trucks of delicious food and sponsored by Bud Light and the Seafair Foundation, waiting in line for some of those delicious tacos was definitely worth it.
While we only had the opportunity to try a couple, the ones we had were... well there are no words, just YUM!

I think my favorite taco that I had, although the fish tacos we had were awesome as well, was the biscuit taco from Biscuit Box, which was a yummy biscuit filled with boa spicy pork and a slaw of a few vegetable.
The pork was delicious, veggies helped by giving a crispy texture, and the biscuit was phenomenal, sweet to go along with the savory and the texture was perfect.
I would definitely recommend you try these if you ever see this truck passing by anywhere!

The other truck I had the pleasure to try was The Grilled Cheese Experience and while this truck had a line down a few trucks or more, it was worth it. For a good price, I got a generous amount of cheesy filled quesadilla goodness, with lamb chorizo and onions. I'm glad I waited in line, it was worth it.

While it doesn't seem like we got to try too many trucks (we didn't, the lines were ridiculous and getting full was easy from just two) it was still an amazing day. Sun shining, even got a slight sunburn on my face from it!

Also got to listen to some music, brought to you by The End, as well as, a performance by Colorworks (a local band) and Wild Party. They put on a good show and had song good songs, but the crowd was more interested in the beer garden and I stayed to hear Outright because I do really like that song on the radio lately.

Not the best show, but for $5 I didn't mind at all! I would say, if you have a chance to go to a taco truck challenge either coming up or to the one they put on next year, go! It's cheap, good eats and invite friends, that would have made our experience better as well.

Thanks, cheers!